How do you exercise with leaky heart valves?

A:

Quick Answer

Exercising with a leaky heart valve should begin with light activities, such as walking or swimming. Any high-exertion activities or contact sports should be cleared by a doctor before participating as they can further damage the heart.

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Exercise with a leaky valve is crucial to heart health and potential recovery, but must be done with caution, supervision and approval from a heart specialist. To begin, light exercise is recommended to see how the heart responds. However, this condition doesn't necessarily preclude the individual from carrying out a completely restriction-free exercise regimen under doctor supervision. A leaky heart valve often simply requires periodic observation over time to ensure that the condition doesn't get any worse.

A healthy diet and lifestyle are equally important to exercise when it comes to everyday heart health in patients with a leaky valve. Along with exercise, this lifestyle promotes healthy cardiac activity by reducing high blood pressure and cholesterol that could exacerbate the condition.

Even if all health guidelines and suggestions are followed, there is a chance that a leaky valve could worsen. Phases of shortness of breath, fatigue or weakness could be an indication of a complication due to the leaky heart valve. These incidents should be reported to a cardiologist immediately.